


Homeward Bound

by Rykeral



Series: The Anchor-Verse [3]
Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-20
Updated: 2019-10-20
Packaged: 2020-12-27 02:40:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,042
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21111323
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rykeral/pseuds/Rykeral
Summary: Life's going great for Lena Luthor, and she wants to pay it forward, especially for her lover Diana Prince, AKA Wonder Woman. However, what do you get a woman who has seen all and can buy all? The answer; you take her home. But sometimes it isnt that easy, sometimes you need help, sometimes you need the World's Greatest Detective. Sometimes you need Batman.A side story set between Game Night and Baby-Steps.





	Homeward Bound

Lena let out a sigh as the car pulled up next to the curb and idled. Outside she could see faint flashes of cameras and caught the glitz and glam that usually accompanied the rich and famous.

Snapping her laptop closed, she took a moment to make sure her appearance was in order. Her make-up was flawless, highlighting her eyes with dark lips, and she was in a fitted navy suit. She let a smirk curl her lips.

She was fashionably late, beyond fashionably late, to the hottest event of the season, the Wayne Enterprises Charity Gala. Even Bruce himself had already arrived, though Lena was certain he had been informed of a moderately successful hack of his private servers, ones pertaining to the Justice League. Lena had been aware of the security protocols, and had gone through them anyway, she was sure her picture had been shared with Bruce already. She wondered if Alfred was nearby with some support in case Lena were to out any of the Justice League, or use the information she had gained somehow.

She was looking forward to seeing Bruce now, and let that thought, and not of the politics of her presence here in Gotham, give her courage. She always enjoyed a verbal dance with both parties aware of each other, it was thrilling. She usually won.

A well dressed young man in a suit opened the door for her and offered her his hand upon recognising a woman in the car. He had likely been there all night, opening doors and then guiding the women out of the car and onto the pavement. She almost expected him to bow over her hand and was thankful he didn’t.

She accepted it and let him guide her from the Benz, lifting her head and thanking him gracefully as camera’s flashed and the press corralled at the barriers shouting her name, and demanding to know what she was doing far from home, in Gotham.

She ignored them, the vultures, she was here for one reason, and she didn’t need to speak with them. Still. It wouldn’t be proper for her not to pose for a few photo’s, and she glided up the stairs, nodding to a few elites she recognised.

Unlike most of the female attendees, she was wearing a three piece suit, navy and buttoned, though she had paired it with heels and subtle silver accessories.

She had her hair down, straight, meaning business, and to her design, her suit had pockets. Life was going good. Better than good. Great actually. Her and Kara were working their way through their issues, trying to settle back into the friendship they once had, and while it had been rocky to begin with, and still had some awkward moments, they were getting there. Her stock prices were up, public opinion was positive, she had some fantastic new off-world employees who were going to help her drag L-Corp, and the World, into the future, and she had a wonderful lover. Pun intended.

Diana was back in Paris and had been for a few weeks. Love long distance was hard, as she had discovered. She barely had enough time between L-Corp and her family, let alone a long-distance lover, but they were trying. Lena would never ask Diana to leave Paris, she had a life there, no matter how much Lena had come to miss her. Lena could never leave L-Corp or National City, and she wouldn’t the same of Diana. It left them both at an impasse that they had yet to acknowledge, but they enjoyed the days they stole together regardless.

Lena could fly to Paris and back in a day if necessary, though Diana had to take commercial flights unless people started to wonder how Diana Prince could get to and from France in a day. Still, the likelihood of their relationship lasting outside of weekly visits once every few months was…… sizable. She didn’t want to lose Diana and what they had found together, and had a few ideas for it that she was quietly tinkering with, ones that would probably get her in trouble if anyone else knew about it. The thought of using the technology she and Rhea had developed for something that would please her was maybe a little petty, but she hated Rhea the way she hated no one else.

Still. She was thankful that she had Arthur, Vulko, Atlanna, and even Thomas, who was quite knowledgeable on history and was like the cool, drunk uncle she’d never had. They were going to get married soon, officially, and Lena was looking forward to seeing how the two combined their cultures, or even if Atlanna would pick the Surface World over her home.

Princess Mera had been a wonderful addition as well, she was teaching Lena to read the sea, and how to control it. Arthur was barely passable at it, he didn’t have the discipline for it that Mera had said was important. It struggled to keep his attention, whereas Lena was very practiced in focusing her mind on things for an extended period of time. Lena Luthor could water-bend- Ruby would be stoked when she showed her- and it made her feel like a character from a comic book. That had been a surprise, a revelation to realise that she, Lena Luthor, was meta human and could be a ‘hero’ if she wanted to. She ignored that thought for the most part, having only stepped out once to save Kara and then to save the people on the bridge. But… she couldn’t deny the rush it gave her. She was happy to serve in that way, and regardless of what people were saying about Valkyire, she didn’t want to fight.

Mera had told her that their hydrokinesis could be used in combat, and while practically it was a useful tool, Lena wasn’t very good just yet. She could only just form basic shapes from water, but she was getting there, and learning to harness it with the precision required for attack and defence was beyond her skill.

All in all, life was going well for her, so she wanted to pay it forward. She had asked her family how she could return their kindness and their only response had been to hug her- Atlanna was a hugger, and Lena adored her- and tell her that her presence in their life was enough, but that she was eager to learn their, her, heritage was all they could ever want. She went to Atlantis fortnightly, and once a week joined Atlanna and sometimes Thomas for coffee. She was teaching Atlanna how to be a woman in the surface world. Her uncle Thomas, for all his kindness, was a simple man and couldn’t really prepare his soon-to-be-wife for a life above the ocean. Because that was their only choice. If they wanted to be together Atlanna had to leave the ocean, and though it killed her to do it, she loved Thomas more. Still, now that Arthur was King, she could come and go as she pleased, but Lena knew it caused some tension, if only because Thomas could never understand because it was impossible.

Lena didn’t like the impossible, and had had a thought of building Thomas an atmospheric suit. It wouldn’t need to be bulky and so…. Chunky as the ones the humans used. She had the strength in metal with her nanobots and she had a gel she could fit it between the metal and the innersuit she’d design for Thomas. It wouldn’t be perfect, but it would let him go to Atlantis and see and explore and become connected to his son and his lover in a way that he hadn’t before. She hoped to have it complete by Christmas, but it was a hard deadline.

Vulko had been much the same, he had just told her he was happy to have her home, with them, and beyond happy that she was learning of her heritage. He had taken to asking her some questions, though, questions she was able to see through, and she was calculating the day when Atlantis announced itself to the world, and the potential fall-out it could cause. An entire Empire didn’t just pop out of the ocean and live peacefully with their neighbours. Treaties would need to be negotiated, pacts made, and honestly the laws and regulations regarding the oceans needed to be addressed. What was happening to the sea was no good, and she knew that many of the Atlantean’s still supported her half brothers cause of setting the Surface-Dwellers straight, even if it was no longer with violence. There was only so much abuse their home could take, and while Arthur was a bridge between the two worlds, he needed to tread carefully.

Dumping the rubbish of the surface back on the beaches had taken a lot of work, but it had been worth it to clear their backyards. Still, it would continue unless it was stopped and she knew that the topic was one Arthur, Vulko, and Atlanna were navigating carefully.

The only person she hadn’t asked to thank was Diana, Wonder Woman, Princess of Themyscira. Her lover. She knew what Diana ached for, even though she never voiced it. She wanted to go home, to know what had become of her sisters and mother, to see Themyscira once again.

Lena had asked for many stories, curled up together, and usually it was only when the skies clashed that Diana would tell her them. Her childhood had been filled with joy and love and compassion, a thirst for learning and a desire to protect. It was almost unreal, and Lena had been saddened by how quickly Diana had learnt of the cruelties of the world outside of Paradise Island. She still retained her compassion though, much like another hero in the city, and Lena wanted to, not reward her, but she wanted to give her back her home, to give her back a part of her that was missing.

As of yet she had come up empty. Her searches, and she had been thorough, had come up empty, and as she wanted it to be a surprise for Diana, she could hardly ask her. Though what Diana could tell her Lena wasn’t sure. Diana had been certain she could never return, that magic concealed the island from the world, and Lena was sure that if Diana knew how to go back she would have, especially after the loss of Steve. No. Lena had two options left to her, and one of them resided in Gotham, home of the Bat, and the man she wanted to speak to.

Bruce Wayne had been unavailable, as had he been every time she had Jess request a meeting. It was frustrating, but necessary in business, though as the CEO of L-Corp, she would have thought she deserved some of his time. As he had been hard to pin down, she had decided to come personally. She’d show up at the damn Bat Cave if necessary, but didn’t want to play her cards just yet. One should never take any advantage the moment it presented itself, you should wait until the opportune moment, or so the Luthor’s had taught. She was content to wait to show that particular hand, and knew that Batman had been busy with a Clown problem recently, so she didn’t mind the trip. Besides, Wayne Enterprises was hosting a charity gala at one of Gotham’s premier museums, and it was a good opportunity for networking, not that she was planning much of that. She was here for Bruce and Bruce alone.

After making sure the photographers got all her right angles, her PR team had a hard enough job managing her as it was and she did blame Diana’s mischievous side, she ducked inside.

The main party would be in one of the many gallery’s, with paintings and artefacts, in the centre of the museum. There would be dancing and food and then the auction, she wondered what stage the event was at now.

She passed a few waiters heading in the opposite direction and towards the doors, but paid them no mind. They were probably going to get more food or drink for the guests.

As she got closer to the main hall she could hear music, and see a few people wandering the museum.

There were a few stragglers, staring at art pieces or giggling together against walls, the free champagne already getting to them. Lena ignored them as she breezed past and she followed the sounds of music and buzz of conversation to the greater hall.

It was a large ballroom, with tables in the corner and pedestals with items for sale down each side, and there was a band in the opposite corner where a small dance-floor was being used.

Everyone was dressed in their finery, as was to be expected, and she recognised many of the people present. There were members of the press there, as well, no doubt informed of her presence from their comrades outside, and she ducked past a few, before a familiar face cornered her.

“Miss Luthor! What are you doing in Gotham?”

Lena cast her gaze over the assembled couples dancing in the middle of the hall or standing around in groups by tables chatting before turning to the reporter.

“Janice, you’re a little far from home.” She commented before looking the woman over. “Demoted?”

Janice’s jaw clenched and Lena bit back her amusement. Maybe the woman had been demoted, it would serve her right. Gotham wasn’t exactly a nice place to work and live, and she was probably missing National City.

“Not that it’s any of your business, but…,” she added, seeing her prize over in the corner, talking to a very attractive blonde and looking very bored. “I can’t fuck my way through the Justice League if I stay in National City.”

Flashing the gaping reporter her fixed, politician’s smile, she slid her way through the guests. To her amusement the less reputable press had run with her off-hand comment, and many were speculating if she was actually sleeping with Arthur and Diana, and well, she wanted to have a little fun.

She’d let Bruce Wayne come to her, when he saw her, and he’d see her soon enough. For now, though, a golden broach had her attention. She’d browsed the auctions pieces while she had hacked Wayne’s network, and had found a beautiful arm head band that needed further examination.

She was moving down the hall when there was a presence at her side.

“I didn’t expect to see you here, Miss Luthor.”

Lena didn’t turn her gaze from the ceremonial face mask she was looking at but let a smile curl her lips. “Well, what’s a girl to do when you don’t take her calls?” She lifted her glass to her lips and then turned to Bruce. “Mr Wayne.”

The playboy come vigilante was looking dapper in a black suit, with jacket, singlet, and white silk shirt. The splash of colour was a stripped tie. He was an attractive man, and he knew it, and had been told it all his life. But that was what wealth and power got you in a city governed by corruption. People kissed his ass every day, it was no wonder he pandered to the billionaire playboy image the press loved to parade him as. He was a far cry from his black suit and cowl, fighting for justice in the streets with his fists and violence.

“Don’t you look….” She ran her eyes over him and then lifted her gaze to meet his eyes, “dashing,” she finished and took another sip of her champagne. It was the good stuff and she savoured it, aware of the ruby stain her lipstick was leaving on the rim.

Bruce smiled charmingly at her, and a lesser woman would have swooned, as he took her glass from her hand and handed off to a passing waiter. “I’m glad you chose another colour,” he nodded to her own suit. “I don’t think I’d handle the competition.” She knew she looked good but it was nice to have her ego stoked. She _was_ wearing her suit rather well.

Lena lifted a brow, aware of the eyes of the room on them, just like Bruce had likely intended as he offered her his hand. “Would you care to dance?”

Lena eyed it a moment before taking it and he guided her across the room to the dance floor, people parting for them as though they were royalty. They almost were, together their net worth’s could have out brought ninety percent of the population. It was a humbling thought.

“Well aren’t you the gallant… Knight,” she said pointedly as Bruce took her in his arms, firm and strong. She wondered if he would address the elephant in the room, her hacking of his servers and then showing up at his party, a party where there were a lot of press…. And a lot of people would be interested in learning about the Justice League.

She was aware of the music changing, and caught the way Bruce’s jaw clenched at her insulation but he made no further comment on it, spinning her closer to the orchestra.

“What brings you to Gotham?”

Lena nearly smiled. She did enjoy this level of the business game, the corporate back and forth where you held your cards close to your chest while trying to reveal what hand your opponent had.

“The company,” Lena commented dryly as she accepted Bruce’s hand and spun again before letting him pull her back in, and really he was a _marvellous_ dancer. The music was loud this close to the instruments which had been his intention, and she knew they would need to speak carefully or lean close to talk.

“Somehow I doubt that,” he smiled at her, bracing her a moment before dipping her as the music demanded. Her hair whipped around her as he held her there a moment, eyes drilling into her own. She was aware of camera flashes and knew that by morning the world would think they were fucking. The thought wasn’t displeasing. The world would be theirs if they came together, but Lena wasn’t interested in Bruce, nor he with her.

Still, it was irksome being photographed with every other man and having the world think they were sleeping together. She and Diana had been photographed out for months now, and still the press called them ‘close friends’ and ‘gal-pals’ though they hadn’t gone over the top the PDA. Diana had made a comment of her kissing her senseless before they’d get that they were together, to which Lena had responded that if they ever got married the press would call it a ‘friendship ceremony’ and call their rings a ‘sign of their strong friendship.’ Diana had laughed and pressed her into the couch and she didn’t think much after that.

“You’ve got me,” she admitted with an airy laugh, aware of a few couples creeping closer and trying to catch their conversation.

“I came to see you, actually. You haven’t been taking my calls.”

Bruce’s lip twitched and Lena could see that he was tired, likely recovering from an injury within the past week after his Joker problem. She had to hand it to Diana, her villain’s were taken care of, and they never hurt anyone again. It was efficient and had a one-hundred percent chance of no reoffence, but she could see why Bruce, Kara, and Clark chose not to kill their enemies. Collateral damage be damned. Lena didn’t necessarily approve, but it meant she had living family members, which wasn’t necessarily a good thing. Still, each to their own.

“I’ve been busy,” Bruce said and glided into his own turn as Lena spun around, their finger-tips flirting away before coming back together. “I had a security breach quite recently.”

Lena let the proper amount of polite concern show on her face, though her blood was singing through her veins. “How terrible. I hope you caught whoever was responsible?”

“I have my eye on the culprit.”

Lena nearly laughed as the music wound down, turning slow and softer to single the end of the song. “Well, I hope you catch them.”

“I will,” Bruce said confidently and they glided to a stop as the echo of music faded.

There was a slight commotion at the door, a waiter had dropped a tray of glass and it had gone over the floor.

Lena made to disentangle herself but Bruce’s grip tightened and she fell back into his arms as another song started.

“Another?”

It wasn’t a question and Lena was aware of the strength in the hold she was in. In other circumstances she would be wary of a man, of anyone really, holding her so tightly and not wanting her to leave, but both she and Bruce knew that she had been the one to hack his system, and she knew he was afraid of what she had found and wanted to know what she planned to do with the information. Turnabout was fair play.

“Aside from company,” Bruce lowered his voice, carefully keeping his lips from moving too much, constantly aware of the eyes on them. “What brings you here? Surely not just me?”

Lena let out a little laugh. “I’m sure your aware by now, Bruce,” she said playfully, and this song was soft and smooth, intimate. It left them speak quietly, closely, though the press would be having a field day with it. “I’m planning to fuck my way through the Justice League, and Batman is next on my list.”

The strong bands of muscle around her tightened before a steading gust of air blew across her face, and she was glad she’d gone with some killer heels, Bruce was a man of impressive stature and she appreciated the extra height she had, though his head was still above her own.

“Well, our resident vigilante is a hard man to find. If you find him, I’m sure commissioner Gordon would appreciate the tip.”

“I’m afraid I have a different sense of justice than most, Bruce. I’ll leave vigilantism to the professionals. Besides,” she let her nose wrinkle. “A bat?” She gently shook her head. “I think there are a few _issues_ there,” she emphasised with a knowing lift of her brow, leaning forward conspiratorially, “if you catch my meaning.”

“It takes a disturbed individual to go around in a mask and beat people up, though the problem isn’t just Gotham. I hear National City has its own share of masked vigilantes?”

Lena conceded the point. “And a Super. Though our police aren’t quite so…disinterested in the welfare of the people.”

“Did I read,” he began as they swayed together. “You and Supergirl reignited your friendship?”

Lena rolled her eyes. “You know how the media gets. Any whiff of a scandal,” she added, sounded thoroughly disappointed in them. “Can hardly look at someone without there being something behind it, I’m sure you understand.”

He nodded slowly and the song was starting to wind down. There were a few raised voices over by the door but the two of them ignored them in favour of each other.

“Well, can I help? What do you need?”

Lena let herself smile and as the song came to a close, she lifted up to press a kiss to Bruce’s cheek.

“Themyscira,” she whispered into his ear.

Bruce stiffened as she pulled back and she smiled at him sweetly.

His eyes were narrowed in suspicion, but he must have seen who she was spending time with, surely? He had to know why she was asking. She was spending time with Diana, that was public knowledge, even if the public didn’t know who the mysterious brunette was, even if most didn’t know that Diana Prince was Wonder Woman. Bruce would know. They were mutual acquaintances. Perhaps that had been why he had been so hesitant to call her out on her hacking and demand what she wanted.

The commotion over by the door grew louder and she stepped away to glare at the door. She was trying to have a conversation here.

Suddenly there were shouts and screaming and then armed people in balaclava’s came into the room, roughly shoving guests aside.

Bruce tensed, body ready for action and she could see him searching for an exit, likely to rush out and get his suit.

There were too many witnesses, and judging from the bullets that littered the roof, the thugs had live ammo and were prepared to use it. She’d never understood why people in films did that, but at seeing the increased hysteria of the guests, she realised why. It was to start a panic.

There were shouted demands as the people fell back, and there were women screaming, a scuffle that Lena and Bruce couldn’t see, and then another gun shot, muted, likely from a smaller weapon.

Then there was a shout, a name screamed, and then a bullet spray into the ceiling.

A hush fell over the assembled people and one of the men started shouting again.

Heart hammering, Lena glanced around for a way out, even as she knew that each of the exits had been covered.

“Shit,” Bruce muttered and Lena gripped his arm.

“Everyone over there! Against the wall!”

Guns were gestured and soon the guests were shuffling over to the wall, right by the windows and between the criminals and the outside. They were like corralled sheep, frightened and moving against each other with wide eyes.

A few people were roughly grabbed and thrown down, but most were ducking and cringing away from the firearms. Someone had been shot, right when the men burst in the door, and he was dragged over to the corner, a sobbing woman with him as they tried to stop the bleeding.

Slowly the people were positioned over at the wall with their hands up and any cell phones were handed over at gun point. Lena made sure hers was locked before handing hers over and kept her eyes on Bruce to make sure he complied. They were compliant as their wrists were bound with zip-ties and they were forced onto the ground.

“Now!” Shouted a man when everyone had handed their phones over and had been restrained. He had a skull painted on his face shield, covering his neck and up to his eyes, where he was wearing a beanie. He looked very stupid, but Lena wasn’t about to comment on it, especially as he was holding a gun. Still, a skull face mask, sunglasses and a beanie wasn’t very attractive.

Like the rest of his comrades he was wearing body armour, had a big gun in his hand, and had a side arm. They were all in black and had their faces covered, clearly professionals, or wanting to appear as professionals. Lena could see the cords of communication devices and as she took them in, there were seventeen in total, and they quickly overturned a food trolley to pull-out high-tech computer equipment and Lena knew this was a carefully planned job.

They’d likely been the staff she had seen heading towards the exits when she arrived and she kicked herself for not questioning it. It was all a set up and she wondered what they wanted, if it was money they certainly had the right people.

“We’re gonna make this nice and simple!” The man was shouting. “All you rich people stay nice and quiet in the corner and I wont start shooting ya. Keep your heads down and we can all go home.”

The crowd was silent, compliant in their fear, though a few were opening crying. Lena kept her head down as she glanced over the men. They were positioned at the exits and across the front of the hostages, because that’s what they were, Lena realised, they were hostages.

A few muttered messages were passed between the men and Lena learnt that the entrances had all been sealed and were guarded, ready for an attempt to retrieve the hostages. They had grenades rigged on each of the doors and had taken over the security cameras, effectively locking the building down.

It was clever, keeping civilians between the windows and anyone who might like to shoot at them from the outside.

A few people were sobbing as Lena’s mind whirled, and she watched as a communication port was set up and she strained to hear what was said.

“Gotham City,” the man with the skull face spoke, “we currently have the Wayne Enterprises Gala held hostage. You are to release Dimitri Vanco from prison immediately. You are to provide him with safe passage back to Russia. If you do not comply, we will start killing hostages. You have six hours.” The man gave a number for the police to call and then one of the men took the computer and walked down the line of hostages, showing the city who was held hostage and who would die if the city didn’t comply.

Lena winced and shifted on the floor. She was glad she wasn’t in a dress, at least in her suit she could sit without having her bare skin touching the cold floor.

Next to her she could feel Bruce’s anger like a palpable thing, and she considered then, letting him know she knew about him, confirming what they had alluded too, but also telling him who she was, but there wasn’t much that could be done. She had left her nanobots at home and he didn’t have his suit. Even then, the gunmen would likely open fire on the civilians, so the best thing she could do was gather as much information as she could about her captors so she could report back to the police later.

The communication was terminated, it was probably a live stream though social media, and the men muttered amongst themselves, mouths hidden and muffled, but they didn’t know a meta-human was in the room and could hear everything they said.

It took her a while, but she soon realised that the leader of the group wasn’t the man with the skull mask, it was a man with black sunglasses and a wolf muzzle instead.

Humming quietly she stretched out her legs to wait. She wanted to get as much information as she could before she made a move. It would be best to wait and see who the major players were going to be.

To Gotham Police Department’s credit it didn’t take them very long to mobilise, and soon the hall was cast with blue and red lights from outside, and the hum of helicopters overhead. But it was probably because the wealthiest and most famous people in the city were present, Bruce Wayne among them.

At some point they thugs came past with a camera again, taking video of all of the people and it was probably to make them seem real, rather than just a name on a guest list.

As the camera came past her, Lena kept her head down. So far it didn’t see like these men were after money, so no need to draw their attention to her. She could act later if need be.

She cursed herself for not bringing her suit. She really should have, but it was undergoing a few upgrades and she hadn’t thought she would need it in Gotham. A rookie mistake. She wouldn’t be making the same one again. Her tech would be going with her next time, even if it was something small.

She kept cataloguing everything she observed and heard for a long time, long enough for the clock on the wall to chime once, and then again. A few times a phone had rung, the one the thugs had identified as their line of communication to the hostage negotiator, but when it wasn’t to confirm that Dimitri had been released, they hung up again.

At one point the people had come down and demanded their names, and had been thrilled to find Bruce Wayne and Lena Luthor as hostages, the two of them could buy entire countries, so as far as hostages went, these men had hit the jackpot.

They’d been held hostage for over an hour and a half when there was movement. A raised voice, pleading, caught her attention and she glanced down the collective row of hostages.

“Please,” a woman was begging, voice clogged with tears and hysteria. “Please you have to help!”

She was on her knees, her once pretty dress smeared with blood and Lena partially lifted off the floor. She had tried to voice her concerns earlier, Lena noted, but they had all be threatened to remain silent, so she had had no choice. Now though, it looked like she was choosing the threat of death over speaking out.

“Please, he needs a hospital! He’s bleeding!” She was addressing a man with a clown face as his face mask and he wasn’t particularly nice.

“Shut up!” Came the response and she was shoved back onto the floor next to her companion, crying out slightly. “Stay down!” The threat was obvious with the gun shoved in her face.

Lena ducked her head forward again, frowning down the line.

She scooted forward again and Bruce’s arm came down like a vice. “What are you doing,” he hissed, darting his eyes over at the guards who weren’t really watching them all that well. In fact, a few of them had taken one of the computers and were watching a football game.

To be fair, most of the hostages weren’t going anywhere, and if Lena had heard correctly, the museum was locked down. No one in or out, so a bit of relaxation was possible.

Lena wondered what kind of man inspired such loyalty. Even if the police did release Dimitri, and if the captors kept their bargain, no one was getting out, unless they were escorted out in a police car. It was a suicide mission, without the suicide, hopefully the Gotham police were more of the shoot as a last resort kind, but she wasn’t hopeful.

“I’m going to help,” she hissed back and pulled her arm away and she could see Bruce was surprised by her strength.

Keeping an eye on the guard she slowly slid across the floor, moving a little bit like a crab until she was near the wounded man.

“You! What are you doing?!” The gun swung around in her direction, as did a lot of eyes.

Lena halted and raised her hands the best she could with them bound.

“I’m a doctor,” she said calmly, heart hammering. Bulletproof she may have been, but the people around her weren’t and she didn’t want them to start shooting at her. “Please let me help his man.”

The man with the gun glanced down at the man, clearly bleeding to death, and back at her. “You aren’t a doctor.”

“I never finished med school, three Ph.Ds at once was too much, even for me. I’ve been too busy to finish it, but I have the training.”

She could he was thinking it through, though she couldn’t see his eyes or face.

“Please. No one needs to die today.”

He looked back at the man bleeding and his pleading wife before jerking his head and she scuttled down the line.

“Move,” she ordered a few people, and they carefully let her clamber over them, usually in front of them, but she expected that.

“Let me help,” she said as she came upon the wounded man, and it was clear he was not in good shape.

Blood had darkened his suit from navy to black and he was pale, his own hands covered in blood as he tried to stem the bleeding. The crowd around him also had smears of blood on their clothes, and his head was being cradled in the arms of another man, probably a stranger. There was a rolled-up jacket over his chest, clearly being used to keep pressure on. At least they knew the basics.

She glanced around her, only to look at Bruce. He had obviously followed her down, ready to help if he could, and she figured that Batman would have some experience with gunshot wounds.

“What’s his name?” She asked as she quickly assessed him, taking in the amount of blood that looked to be lost as well as his shallow breath and ashen skin.

“Um,” the woman from before wiped her face with the back of her arm, smearing some more blood over it. “His name is Jeremy.”

“Hi Jeremy,” she said calmly, as Bruce guided people back away from them. It wouldn’t do well for the captors to think they were up to something, at least they could see Lena leaning over him, trying to provide medical attention.

“How are you doing?”

He tried to smile at her through clenched teeth and she could help but smile back at him.

“Peachy,” he rasped out and she cast a glance over his face before moving down to his chest.

“I need to see the wound,” she said and rolled up her sleeve the best she could with her wrists bound. Best keep the wound area as clean as possible.

She was quick with her assessment, nodding at the man holding pressure over the wound to let go and then she did her best to see where the damage was, and how bad it was.

She quickly pulled back and the man continued to apply pressure.

“How’s your breathing, Jeremy?”

He just groaned and she could see the veins in his neck pulsing powerfully. “Jeremy?”

It took him a moment again, rasping out an answer and she could see it was costing him. “Chest hurts.”

Shit.

“Take your hands off,” she demanded of the man applying pressure. It was easy for him as both of his hands were bound together.

“What? Are you crazy?”

“Now!” She ordered and started looking around.

“What is it?” Bruce asked urgently in a low voice.

“I need something sharp.” She cast him a glance as she started to unbutton the victims shirt. He had been declared too weak to have his wrists bound, so it was easy enough for her to try and drag the fabric down his arms.

“What’s happening?” The woman sobbed and Lena knew that everyone was watching her, she was easier to watch than the men with guns.

Lena ignored the question.

Bruce could only look at her hopelessly and shrug. They didn’t have anything sharp, why would they?

“I need a knife or something,” she said and started to pull the shirt apart. As she did she winced, blood covered Jeremy’s chest, and from a little bullet hole, no bigger than her fingertip pad, she could see bubbles forming in the blood. One side of his chest was lifted oddly, straining against the skin and Jeremy’s eyes were fluttering.

“Shit,” Bruce uttered and grimaced.

“My sentiments exactly.”

Her options were limited. Jeremy’s gunshot wound to the chest had likely pierced a lung or something of the sort, air, meant to go into his lungs, was slowly filling his chest, making it hard for him to breathe. She could see how one side of his chest was taking the air, forcing his lung to the side with the pressure. She had to relieve the pressure, but how?

“Excuse me,” she said, spinning on her knees and lifting her hands. She ignored the blood on them as one of the thugs saw her.

“Excuse me,” she repeated, hands held before her as though in prayer. “This man needs immediate medical attention or he is going to die.”

She kept her voice clear and calm as she got the attention of every captor.

“We need to get him to hospital immediately.”

Skull-face grunted out an answer and Lena shook her head.

“Not good enough,” she said firmly, and she could feel the eyes on her, the shock and surprise but also the awe.

Skull face’s gun came up and she swallowed down her instantaneous fear. She’d had a gun pointed at her a lot, but you never really got over it. “You are in control, right?” She said, and she turned her attention to Wolf-muzzle instead, addressing the leader clearly. “I know it. You know it. They know it,” she tilted her head in the direction of the police outside.

“If this man dies, he dies because you let it happen. Right now, you have all the power to save him. Right now, those people out there?” She lifted her hand to point behind her, at the flashing lights outside. “They don’t know what kind of person you are, what you are capable of. You and I both know that you’ll shoot us if you don’t get what you want.”

She couldn’t see Wolf-muzzle’s eyes, could only see her reflection as he got closer. Around her the hostages recoiled back, and she noticed how Wolf-muzzle was careful not to come too far forward.

Bruce shuffled up next to her, hands on his head. “She’s right. You have all the power now.” He didn’t flinch away from the guns and she felt her admiration of him grow. Lena was bulletproof, but he wasn’t and he knew it. “If you show you can be reasonable, they’ll be more likely to do what you want.”

There was a moments silence and Bruce added. “Right now, the police think you’ll just kill everyone here, but if you show mercy, then that makes you all the more powerful.”

“But letting this man die,” Lena continued clearly, trying to appeal to his sense of control, as she knew that he wouldn’t care if they died, he was willing to shoot them, but only when he was ready. Lena was hoping that breaking the plan would throw him off enough for Lena to get him to do what she wanted. “Means you aren’t in control. Killing people is easy,” she added. “Keeping them alive is the hard part. Please,” she asked again. “Let me help him.”

The answer was a long time coming. “Fine.” Wolf muzzle nodded once at Skull face and then strode back to the computer.

Taking his answer as his word Lena turned back to her patient. “I need a knife, or something sharp,” she didn’t bother keeping her voice low. If wolf-muzzle had allowed it, she figured from what she had seen that he would be obeyed. The hierarchy was obvious.

“So you can stab me? I don’t think so,” grunted one of the thugs and Lena spun around to glare at him.

“So I can stab him,” she growled, jamming her bound hands down towards her patient. “He has a collapsed lung, we need to relieve the pressure.”

She waited a moment, staring into sunglasses before she got impatient. “Today!”

“Bring him here,” one of the men came past, a different one, he had a face shield with a mountain range on it. He was also pulling a knife from a sheath at his side.

“What?” He shrugged when his friends looked at him. “I don’t want him to die if he doesn’t have to.”

Bruce and Lena shared a glance and then she was rising. “I’ll get his legs,” she said and Bruce ducked around to grab him by the arms.

It took him a bit of manoeuvring, but as Jeremy had his hands free Bruce was able to direct them through his arms and lift.

“Stay here,” he ordered Jeremy’s female companion and she was grabbed by other hostages as Lena and Bruce dragged the wounded man across the floor and away from the windows. Lena couldn’t ignore the smear of blood they left behind them.

Mountain-man handed his gun off to his friend and Lena heard the friend tell him that if he got in trouble he would be shot as well. Mountain-man just shrugged it off and crouched down near Lena.

“Cut him here,” Lena ordered, running her finger down Jeremy’s ribs until she found the right spot.

“Here?”

The knife was in reach, and it was a big one, the length of her fore-arm and looked just as sharp. She could see how Bruce eyed it as well, but when he lifted his eyes off it she saw determination there instead, he was ready, but he would wait. Unarmed, bound, and against guns he didn’t stand a chance.

“There, all the way in,” she ordered and then her second problem presented itself.

“I need a tube, or a.. thing,” she held her hands out, trying to describe what she needed. Ideally, she’d have a tube for this, but anything would do. Heck, she’d settle for a pen. Something to stick in through the ribs and guide the air out. She hoped it would work.

“Something hollow and thin.”

There were shaken heads and silence and a few muttered comments that Lena heard and then dismissed as irrelevant until…

“Would a straw work?”

Lena heard the voice and she tensed. A straw. It wouldn’t be ideal but if it was the best she’d get.

“Straw,” she lifted her voice, letting it carry. “Get me a straw!”

There was movement over at the hostages and then a straw was being handed forward, Bruce scurried forward on his hands and knees to retrieve it.

Mountain man was on his heels to watch, and wiped his knife on Jeremy’s dress-pants before pocketing it.

Lena winced as she wondered how many hands it had touched the straw on its journey and then decided that could be another person’s problem. Hopefully a doctors.

“I’m gonna just…” she winced as she slid her fingers into the knife wound and felt the warm, wet and sticky blood coat them. Bruce leant down and jammed the straw into the gap and they both backed off to watch.

There was a faint hissing sound and Lena sat, letting out a sigh of relief. She couldn’t help but smile at Bruce, who was looking at her as though seeing her in a new light.

“Impressive,” he complimented and rubbed his nose with his sleeve.

“He still needs a doctor. Urgently,” she said, turning her attention back to the leader.

She couldn’t see what he was thinking through his sunglasses but he nodded and snapped his finger at a pair of guards.

‘_Take two and have them carry him out. If any cop tries to get in, they all die_.’

Lena caught the Russian but pretended she didn’t as she gaze back at Jeremy.

“You two,” Skull-face directed them with his gun, and Lena and Bruce but their hands back up and followed his direction. “Over there.”

The thugs took a moment to decide who would be good to carry Jeremy out, and soon two of them were opening the doors and letting two of the hostages carefully carry Jeremy out. Lena wasn’t blind to them being ordinary people, the musicians in fact, that they were letting go. On the scale of things, letting a drummer or guitarist go, when you had some of the wealthiest and influential people in the world hostage, wasn’t a great loss. Plus it did make the captors look better.

Lena settled back in, Bruce at her side and they waited.

“That was amazing,” someone whispered to her and she slowly lifted her head, accepting the compliment from Jeremy’s wife with a nod.

There were murmurs of agreement all around but Lena was suddenly exhausted. Saving lives, directly saving lives, was harder than she had thought. Her mother had always made it look easy, but having someone’s life in your hands, literally, was a burden she wasn’t sure she ever wanted again.

“Med school, huh?” Bruce asked her quietly and she let out a sigh.

“I thought mother would love me if I became a doctor like her,” she confessed with a huff. “We all know how that turned out.”

Bruce grunted and folded his arms over his legs. She knew he was waiting for an opportunity, and so likely were the police and SWAT outside, but so far the men hadn’t given them one. Really, all Lena needed was a Superhero.

“Where’s the Supe?” She whispered, hiding her face in her shoulder and could see Bruce frowning as he tried to understand her message.

“Too many hostages.”

Lena ducked her head. She had to agree. There were several hundred of them, and Lena knew that if Clark or Kara arrived, there would be enough warning for the guns to fire and kill some people before they were taken out. It was also possible the thugs had some sort of warning system in place for the Super’s, and if they showed up, then it would be all over for the hostages. Lena was curious as to why they hadn’t put any bombs around anyone, that would keep the Super’s at bay. A kill switch and a half dozen hostages rigged to blow. That would be how Lena would do it. They can’t save them all.

The clock chimed again three times more before there was more movement from the hostages, apparently it was time for a bathroom break, and they were getting restless, tired and hungry.

So far the FBI and SWAT teams outside had drawn the line at giving the captors what they wanted, though to Lena’s ears they had been very by the book, following protocol exactly, which was nice to see. But Lena had learnt from Bruce who Dimitri Vanco was, and knew it was unlikely the government would surrender him. He was head of one of the US’s biggest crime family’s, and had only just been caught after nearly thirty years of criminal activity. He was smart enough, and perhaps scary enough, to never get caught, or when he was, an underling took the blame. The government had been after him for decades, there was an entire task force dedicated to him. They wouldn’t want to just let him go back to Russia. Still, there were hundreds of lives at stake, lives of the very wealthy and influential.

“Wonder what my stocks doing,” she grunted to Bruce and was rewarded with his startled laugh. A lot of their other hostages looked at them aghast, but she ignored them. She was still plotting and planning.

“Mine too,” he sighed and shifted onto his legs.

It was a few minutes later and then Skull-face was talking again.

“Alright. We are gonna let you go to the bathroom in pairs. You try anything and we’ll shoot ya.”

Four of the guards took two hostages to the bathroom and back, herding them like cattle, and it left two at each door and then three by the computer and the rest scattered in front of the hostages.

It took a long time for the thugs to get down the line to Lena, and it gave her enough time to form a plan.

The captors weren’t discriminating on gender, so men and women were escorted to and from the bathroom together, as were any combination there of.

“We need to go together,” she muttered to Bruce, knowing he was probably planning something.

He glanced at her, dark brow furrowing and Lena decided it was now time to play her card.

“You know Arthur Curry?” She asked of him quietly and the crease to his brow deepened. “We’re _family_,” she emphasised, lowering a brow pointedly.

She could see the moment he understood, his features cleared and then determination settled in his eyes.

“Just let me get the blood off my hands,” she said, lifting her bound hands as emphasise. Blood had already dried on the tips of her suit, darkening it to a black, and her palms had the same problem. Some of it had started to flake off, and Lena had tried to rub it off on her pants, she didn’t like having blood on her hands, but she really needed water… and then a manicure. It would take her ages to get the blood out from under her nails.

Bruce was thinking it through, and she knew they would have to come up with a plan quickly.

“On the way back,” he muttered and Lena nodded.

Soon the two of them were getting to their feet, bodies stiff, and she winced a little as she limped across the floor towards the exit. Two guards had waited at the door and they joined the two that were escorting Lena and Bruce down the hall to the bathroom.

As they passed by the computers Lena caught the camera’s on it and grimaced. While it made sense for the thugs to hack into the security cameras to keep an eye on the hostages and on the authorities outside, it made her and Bruce’s plan to fight back a bit more difficult. She also wouldn’t be able to use the full scope of her powers unless she wanted the entire building, and then the world, to know what she was.

The hallways were eerily empty, the kind of echo that was in buildings that usually held people, airports, schools, libraries, they felt void and just wrong, but she shook that feeling off. Fortunately the men and women’s bathroom were next to each other and Lena spent a long moment washing her hands, trying to rid them of blood, before doing her business quickly and she was re-washing her hands when there was a knock on the door, letting her know it was time.

She took a steadying breath in the mirror and nodded to herself. It was go time, she could only hope Bruce was ready as well.

She had broken her zip ties the moment she had entered the bathroom but kept her hands before her as she left, they weren’t looking for someone to break them, so if she pretended like everything was fine, she doubted they would notice.

Bruce was already out, body tense and waiting, and she nodded to him as she approached and their guards moved in around them.

There were only the four, as she had thought. Skull-face was with them, as was a man with guns as his face shield, a guy with a lion, and one with a bear. They all had their guns at the ready, but they didn’t know Lena was bulletproof.

They started to walk back to the hall when Lena stumbled, falling into Bruce and he fell forward, letting her weight drive him to the floor.

“Oi!” The gunmen said as Lena sprawled over Bruce and used her body to hide her snapping the zip tie between his wrists.

“Sorry,” Lena apologised and rose onto her knees, hands before her as though they were still bound. “I twisted my heel,” she explained and got to her feet, as she stood she let out a wicked smile.

Bear-face looked at her for a moment and then she curled her fingers and then punched him, directly in the chest with all of her strength.

The impact of it travelled up her body but she saw, as though in slow motion, how his body jerked around her fist and then went flying back. Oops, maybe that had been a little much.

“Now!”

There was a scuffle next to her as Bruce launched himself to his feet but Lena was more concerned with gun-face bringing his weapon around. She caught the end of the barrel and ripped it from his hands, spinning it around like a bat and smacking him in the face with it. He decided he’d like to sit down.

Her own guards taken care of Lena righted the gun, checked the safety, and then spun around to see how Bruce was fairing.

He had sent Skull-face reeling and was grappling with Lion-face. As she watched, blood pounding through her veins, Skull-face lurched to his knees, drawing a knife. Lena strode over and put her gun in Skull-faces face.

“I really wouldn’t do that,” she suggested pleasantly, smiling at him sweetly.

His glasses had come off and he was glaring up at her now, but was lifting his hands above his head.

“Know how to use that?”

Lena grinned, clicking the safety off and lifted a brow. “What happens if I squeeze the trigger?” She asked him as Bruce and Lion-face continued their fight.

There was a shout and a bullet fired and as she turned her head to see what was going on, Skull-face reared up.

Lena lowered the gun and fired once, into his leg. He went down again with a cry and cradled his knee cap. She’d seen people on television do it and thought it might be a good thing to do.

“Are you done?” She enquired of Bruce and found him on the ground, with Lion-face on top of him, arms open and wide and Bruce grunted as he rolled the thug off him. Clearly it had come down to a choking match.

“Where do we put them?” He asked as he got up, straightening his tie and looked around at the people Lena had taken out. “Diana been teaching you some things?”

So Bruce did know who had been keeping her company. They both knew who the other was, what they were capable of. It was nice to know.

“Some.”

She looked around the corridors. “We don’t have long before they realise and come looking for us. We can only hope they don’t start shooting civilians.”

“We can put them in the bathroom,” Bruce said and started to search through Lion-face’s belongings. He came up with some zip-ties and he and Lena put them to good use, binding the wrists and ankles of the thugs after making sure they were unarmed.

“Can you take the handle off?” He asked as he dragged one of the thugs towards the bathroom.

Working quickly they made sure the thugs were disarmed, secured, and then locked into the bathroom, Lena ripping the handle off to make sure of it. It wouldn’t hold a determined person, but seeing as three were unconscious when they were placed inside, and one had a bullet wound, they were less of a threat.

“What now?” She asked and she took stock of their pile of weapons. There were guns, of course, and a few knives, but there was also a set of brass knuckles that Bruce took.

“You have all the powers Arthur does?”

Lena nodded. “I’m a half-breed, like him,” she admitted, and it was nice to talk to someone else about her heritage, even if that someone was a business competitor who moonlighted as a vigilante.

“We should cut the power.”

Lena shook her head. “We have no guarantee they wont start shooting if we do. Who knows how many will die?”

She and Bruce mulled it over. They were in the secure building, while they could make a break for it they would probably be more useful inside, after all, no one knew that it was Batman and Aquaman’s cousin inside with them.

“They have hooked up to the museums security cameras. They’ll be here soon,” Lena commented and Bruce was kneeling over the guns, putting one over his shoulder and jamming a few others into his belt.

“We can shoot out the camera’s, make them blind, get them to come to us.”

Lena nodded and turned, lifted the gun, and fired. The slight recoil was absorbed by her muscles and she fired off a few more shots, destroying all of the visible cameras down the hall.

“I’ll go around the other side,” she said and turned her head, she could hear a group of them already on their way.

“They’re coming. You got this?”

Bruce straightened, checking his gun over before nodding. “I only kill when I have to,” he said to her, firmly, pointedly.

Lena rolled her eyes. “I haven’t killed anyone yet. These assholes aren’t gonna be the first.”

Bruce flashed her a grin that was charming, from his perfectly straight teeth to the dimples in his cheeks. “Lets go then. We can talk later.”

Lena nodded and then jogged down the hall. Running in heels was actually easier than she had thought it would be, but that was probably because of her impeccable balance.

Soon she was firing her way through the museum, taking out the cameras on the ceiling and wall before moving on. It would probably be clear where she was going, but as she darted down another hall-way, at a human pace, no need to broadcast her abilities it she didn’t need to, she heard gunfire and hoped Bruce knew what he was doing. Still, he had been doing the whole masked crime-fighting thing a whole lot longer than anyone she knew, so she hoped he knew his own capabilities.

Soon she was climbing stairs and jogging across floors before descending again, and she was glad that this museum was smaller than, say, the Louvre, because that was a mammoth task to navigate on the best of days. Fortunately for her, on her last visit, she had been given a private tour after hours by one of its most beloved curators. And had then had a thorough tour of said curator’s bedroom, but that was another tale.

She didn’t have Diana today, and the museums directions were a little wonky, but Lena managed, and was soon skidding to a halt outside the main corridor that led to the hall where the hostages were.

She ran over her firearm in a final check as she leant against the wall and then hesitantly ducked her head around the corner.

Instantly there was gunfire and she darted back behind the wall. In Russian she heard them order to advance on her and she looked around for something to help her out.

There was seating, and that would be useful, only she really didn’t want to be caught on camera lifting it and throwing it down the hall. There was also a bared off doorway with two of those barriers and a rope between them, denying public access.

So. Camera’s first. She ducked around the corner again, taking a moment to see where the security camera’s were before hiding again. Three thugs were getting closer, but she didn’t have to worry about them, she was bullet proof, she just didn’t want to be caught being bulletproof. She wasnt interested in that PR nightmare.

Lifting her gun around she stepped out from behind the corner, taking aim at the cameras and firing before ducking into a tight ball and rolling around the corner. Gunfire followed her and she launched herself up and against the opposite wall, darting across the gap between the two as bullets scattered around her.

She had the presence of mind to mourn the art they were likely ruining, but then realised she had more pressing problems.

One camera down.

She took a moment to breathe and then ducked around the corner again. She lifted the gun and fired, in a well-practiced movement, and she had hours and hours with Lex and clay pigeons to thank for her impeccable aim. He liked to kill, even then, it was the thrill of the hunt, he thought. Lena didn’t like to kill unless necessary, and didn’t participate in hunts, but with clay birds she had a near 1005 accuracy.

The second camera was down, but… she looked at the gun in her hand and at the bullet hole that went through it. Her weapon was useless now.

Annoyed she dropped it and kicked it away.

Plan B.

She strode over to the barrier with the rope between it and the sign saying ‘authorised personnel only’ and unclicked the rope. It was heavy, nothing special, but it had weight to it and she wondered if she could use it further as she picked up the stand.

She’d had a crush on a baseballer back at boarding school, and while she had failed spectacularly at sports, she did know how to hit something hard.

She trotted back to her corner and listened carefully. Her assailants were probably cautious of her firearm, but as she hadn’t gone back around the corner they were hesitant. Maybe she was waiting for them?

The following murmured Russian escaped her hearing and she frowned. There was a slight tink sound and then something was being tossed across the floor in front of her.

Huh?

It took her a moment and then she was covering her eyes and turning into the wall. She heard the blast and caught the blinding white from behind her arms and grunted.

Flash grenade. Clever.

The explosion hit her somewhere in the chest, the percussion of it jarring her a moment and she stumbled away from the corner while trying to keep her balance and position by holding to the wall.

Fuckers.

She wasn’t human, so it didn’t affect her as much, and she had closed her eyes in time, but it still hurt. And she was wincing, and ready to punch someone, when her assailants rounded the corner.

Having super-human abilities was very useful, and she could see why Kara and Clark used them in their everyday life. They probably never had to wait for water to boil. How wonderful, they’d never have cold coffee. Though they probably had also heard far too many things they shouldn’t have, and it was that laughing thought that made her smile as she struck out at her opponents.

She smacked into the first one, jamming her impromptu baton over his gun so he couldn’t lift it and then punched him firmly in the face. She used his body to protect her as she ran forward, and his companions hesitated before opening fire.

He wasn’t very heavy, and she held him by his belt with one arm and kept her stand in the other hand. It was more like a bat than a sword, but she wasn’t being picky.

The body she was carrying jerked and cried out and Lena tossed him at one of his companions before sliding behind a pillar. The man she had tossed had crashed into his comrade and sent the two of them reeling, and she was hoping she hadn’t participated in his murder. She hadn’t been the one to shoot him, that was true, but she was the reason he was shot.

Habit was a hard thing to break and she reflexively huddled behind the pillar as plaster and dust rained down on her.

In a hail of bullets she waited, and then there was a click, and she darted her head around her body-shield to see the final man was changing his magazine as the other man who she’d used as a target rolled out from under his bullet riddled friend.

Grinning she left her protection and launched herself across the distance at him, jumping up and kicking him firmly in the chest. He stumbled back, gun falling to the floor, and skid across the floor. She raced after him, pressing her advantage in time for her to kick him powerfully in the centre of his body. He was lifted up and slammed into the wall before crashing at her feet, limp and unresponsive.

Panting a little Lena winced and quickly ducked down to make sure she hadn’t actually killed him. There had been a crack when he hit the wall.

When she peeled his mask off he had a pulse and she let out a relieved breath.

The dust was irritating and she scratched her head as she turned back around to find the last man. He was scrambling for his gun, which was trapped beneath the body of the man Lena had thrown at him, and he tugged at it frantically as she advanced on him.

Eventually he pulled out his side arm but Lena was already on him. Diana had taught her a few combat tricks, she privately thought Wonder Woman was training her under the guise of ‘teaching’ so that she could become an actual hero, one who fought, but she didn’t want to call her out on it. The more you knew and all that.

She ducked inside his range and snapped her hand down on his arm. He dropped the gun with a yell as she broke it and then she knocked him out.

Right, she thought as he fell back across his companion. That made seven people she had taken out, if three men were sent to deal with Bruce, and if he had succeeded, that meant together they had taken out ten of the seventeen.

She liked those odds. Ideally she’d find out what was going on inside the hall, but doubted she’d get a foot inside without being shot at, and if she opened the door she doubted they’d ask questions first. Arthur had told her she was bullet proof, and while she’d been shot at when bullets bounced off of Charli, she wasn’t particularly interested in confirming the fact. Plus she didn’t want other people to see it for themselves.

So… what to do….

She could continue out to the rescue teams outside, and she could faintly hear them talking, but…. She wasn’t someone to run from a fight, or at least not one she could win. Fighting against her family was harder, it had taken all she’d had for her to stand up to Lex, and she’d never get away with it again.

No, she would stay in the museum and help the people trapped there. She needed to see what was going on in that room, and she didn’t have the time to find the security room and use the cameras for herself. The assailants probably had that on lock down anyway.

She needed a mirror or something, something to let her open the doors and see what was going on inside.

Humming thoughtfully she took the weapons from her last opponent and changed the magazine herself, making sure it was clear before going over to her other friends. She hadn’t been the one to shoot the first assailant, so she wasn’t feeling so guilty, besides, he did have body armour on. She made sure he was alive, and the person by the wall was, before taking their guns and snapping them in two. It would raise questions later, for sure, but as no one was witness to her display of strength, she weighed the pros and cons of them being used versus her secret.

To her delight she also found another two flash grenades on the man she had used as a shield and she tucked them into a pocket each. How wonderfully useful it was to have pockets on her clothing. She hated how woman’s clothing had been guided away from having pockets, it wasn’t practical in the slightest and she blamed capitalism. Pockets were essential for the modern woman.

Wandering back down the hall and to the bathroom she ducked inside and mentally apologised to the museum director, who was back in the main hall, before punching out the glass. Picking a large shard she wandered back down her hallway and pondered her approach.

The door was still closed and she eyed it, wondering what sort of traps there might be on the other side.

If she were the one in their position, she would have boobytrapped all of the entrances and exits, especially if she was planning on camping out for a while, but… these people weren’t as smart as she was, and they had already sent people though the doors. Maybe they had disabled the traps? Or maybe they just didn’t have them anyway.

Hm.

Keeping to the wall she snuck up to the door and strained to hear. There was still a faint ringing in her ears from the flash grenade and she grimaced. That wasn’t about to work. She couldn’t hear a thing.

There was a slight crack under the door and she got down on her stomach to see if she could peer through the crack. It wasn’t quite wide enough and she scooted back on her haunches and considered her options.

The key-hole was the most obvious, but she didn’t know what was waiting for her on the other side. She didn’t exactly want to stare down a gun barrel.

The captors had really chosen their location well, two doors in and out, wall on one side, and then windows out to the street on the other. Right where the hostages were. Very clever. The opposite buildings didn’t have the angle required to shoot through the windows and at the hostage takers, it was very clever.

She needed to get through the door, or at least get it open so she could see inside it and see what was going on. She briefly considered the thought that the assailants might open fire on the hostages, but if that happened then there was no stopping what was outside from coming in. Maybe there was a Super there, who knew? Lena didn’t, and she doubted the criminals did too. No, they would keep their hostages for leverage and trust in their goons to deal with Lena and Bruce. Not that it was working out well for them at the moment.

Taking the glass in her hand she walked over to the wall opposite the door, keeping her eyes on it in case they burst open and someone opened fire at her.

When nothing happened she punched out the wall, digging it out a little until she could force the glass inside. It wasn’t ideal, and it took a little bit of work for it to stand straight, but soon she was looking at her own reflection in a piece of glass the size of her hand.

With her vision she would be able to use the reflected image to gain insight into what was opposite it, she just had to get the doors open.

If she did manage to get the door open, assuming there wasn’t someone on the otherside waiting to see the door handle move and instantly opened fire, she’d be able to hide on the wall and look at the piece of glass she had in the pillar. Hopefully the reflection would give her enough information of the situation so she could plan a way forward. But… she needed to open the doors. What if they were padlocked?

Stumped she settled back against the wall and thought. If it were her sending out minions, she’d make sure there was some sort of signal so that, on their return, they weren’t victim to friendly fire.

She didn’t know if they had one, let alone know what it was, so there went that plan.

It wasn’t like she could just blow the doors apart either.

Huh.

She turned her attention to the seating at the end of the corridor and let herself smile. While she couldn’t blow the doors down, not without making it obvious she had enhancements, she could throw something through them. Though that might also raise some questions, if she got enough momentum then it could get explained away as physics and luck. Hopefully.

She trotted back down the hall, the unfamiliar weight of the flash grenades in her pocket and bouncing against her leg.

That gave her an idea.

She easily pulled the seating up, ripping it from where it was bolted to the floor, and carried it down the hall, lifting it as though it were a simple box and then sat it down near the door.

Then she walked back to one of her first opponents, the one she had smacked with the improvised baton.

It took a bit of manoeuvring, but she was able to stuff him on the bench, with his arms looped through the gap between the seat and the back rest, and then she stepped back to admire her handi-work.

He looked like he was sleeping, face down on the seat, and she let herself smile.

Like taking candy from a child.

Removing the stun grenades she very, very carefully positioned them under the thug and hooked the pins around his clothing. She had to use some of their own zip-ties against them, and ended up looping the grenades together with some of her torn shirt in a sort of sling, but she needed to keep the flash grenades stationary while the pins were pulled. Hopefully the captors would do what humans did, and check on their comrade. When they did…. Bang…. And Lena could come in through the door.

She’d be able to see what was happening, or at least some of it, from her stolen piece of mirror.

Mentally congratulating herself on her genius she slid the bench around, and then ran forward, throwing it through the doors with all of her strength.

The seat shattered the doors as it moved through them, leaving shards of wood flying around it and spilling across the floor.

She skidded to a halt next to the door frame and watched as the seat and its unaware occupant slid further into the room, a volley of wood heralding its presence.

Instantly there were shouts and she watched their reflection in the mirror as guns were raised and people waited.

The hostages had all been grouped against the wall, standing all in a group, one before the other, it made sense. Easier to kill them that way, less chance of missing.

Screaming in Russian and in English gained no response so a group of them hesitantly went forward, four of them with guns pointed at the unmoving body on the bed.

The mans name was called, several times, Niko if Lena heard correctly, and when there was no response they glanced at each other.

They were suspicious but human nature won out and they edged even closer, guns still ready.

One of them nudged Niko and Lena got ready to move. She would be able to make the distance in a few seconds, provided no one noticed her until it was too late.

She didn’t catch the name uttered but soon Mountain- man was turning the body over, shifting his gun over his shoulder to do so.

“Wait-“

Someone began and it was then that Lena launched herself around the corner and ran at the trio of men.

The warning came too late. Niko’s body was turned, and with the force the flash grenades primed under his clothing went off, right in Mountain-mask’s face. She almost felt sorry for him.

There were yells and shouts as Lena slid across the floor and rose up to meet them and she grabbed the first one. The man didn’t stand a chance. She jerked his hand up and around, tearing the gun from his hands before punching him harshly and launching him over her shoulders. Then she ran at the next man who was waving his gun around in his confusion.

Five to go.

They hadn’t fired their guns yet, thankfully, and she was aware of a commotion at the other end of the hall, a loud bang and then smoke. A figure running in through it with gun drawn.

Bruce had obviously gotten hold of a fire extinguisher and had decided to improvise his own smoke grenade.

He was clever, she had to give him that, and she’d like to work with him professionally in the future, but for now she was distracted by her own problems.

Disoriented people with guns were dangerous, and she was pretty sure they would shoot as soon as they realised that they had guns. She took the other one out quickly, he was stumbling around like a child in the dark and then she settled in behind mountain-mask.

She put his own gun between his elbow and his side, keeping her body mostly hidden by his own, and aiming the weapon at the rest of the thugs. If they wanted to shoot her they’d have to have impeccable aim, and be willing to shoot in the direction of their friend. That took courage, and she was hoping these men didn’t have it, though they had shot at her last body guard outside, so it didn’t look so well for Mountain-mask.

Bruce had taken shelter behind a table, and there were two people prone on the ground in his wake.

She’d wonder if he had killed them, only the groaning and clutching at limbs suggested some light maiming.

“Enough!”

Lena peered past mountain-man, who she was holding very tightly, to have her blood freeze in her veins.

Wolf-mask had a very big gun in his hands, no, it wasn’t a gun, it was a grenade launcher.

Over behind the table Bruce met her eyes and she could see the fear in them, not for himself, but for the civilians.

Shit.

Bruce nodded to her, gun ready and she knew what he was telling her.

“When you people play the hero….” Wolf-face was saying and then he clicked a canister into the gun. “Innocent people die. Why don’t you get that? People don’t want or need a hero.”

He lifted the gun and Lena was already moving.

Her blood rushed through her veins as she pushed against the boundaries of what was Atlanteanly possible as she rushed to get between the gun and the civilians who were crying and screaming again.

Hubris. It had been the downfall of them all, she pondered as his finger squeezed on the trigger.

Lex had fallen, Lillian had fallen, and now had Lena. She had been Icarus, daring to fly to touch the sun, and now Lena, who had only wanted to save the world and protect people, would be responsible for more deaths than her mother and brother combined.

Pride cometh before the fall, someone’s voice was mocking in her ear as she launched herself across the distance, and she could see the flash of fire as the grenade fled the barrel.

She would pay for her sins, she knew this, but…. Not today.

She intercepted the grenade as her right foot landed on the marble and she launched up with all of her might.

She would take the hit, but she didn’t want anyone else to get hit with her.

It was like being punched in the chest, a thousand small fists each packing a punch of a thousand men, hitting her all at once.

She grunted as the air was forced from her chest and she could feel heat lapping at her suit as she was thrown through the air.

The concrete and glass fell before her body as she was forced from the room and out onto the lit streets of Gotham.

Bound by forces outside her control she spun through the air until she came to an abrupt halt.

There was a horrid, inhuman screech of metal as she slammed into a patrol car and fell limp to the asphalt.

Ow.

She tried to draw in a breath and found it was rather difficult and tried to groan as she was aware of smoke curling around her. Damn her clothing for being flammable.

“Ow,” she grunted as she slowly pushed herself upright and there was a startled. “Lena?!” Above her.

She opened her eyes to red boots and followed them up long legs, over a red skirt and then to a familiar blue and gold symbol.

“Hey,” she drawled out and forced herself to her knees.

There was still heat on her skin and she glanced down at what remained of her suit. Her body was coated in ash and what remained of the material had melted away, and there were ribbons of amber still licking at her clothing.

She hurt. She hurt all over.

“Argh,” she started to pat at the flames, trying to put them out.

Kara caught her hands and then ducked down to her chest, inhaling sharply and exhaling her freeze breath.

It was cold and Lena jerked. “Hey!”

“We have to get you to hospital,” Kara was saying and her head was turning, likely looking for help and Lena tried to get her hands back.

“I’m fine,” she said, and she really was fine, she was just a little sore and currently exposing herself to the world.

Kara turned back to her and she was patting at Lena’s chest, trying to dust off the chil and ash and what was left of her very expensive suit.

“Um, Supergirl,” she said and Kara had gone still, eyes narrowed at Lena’s chest and she slowly brushed off what remained of the ash, but she couldn’t do much for the blackened marks on her skin.

“You’re fine?!”

Kara exclaimed and Lena looked down at Kara’s hands on her chest, over her breasts, and then back up into Kara’s eyes.

“Yes, well,” she let out a little cough. “Now that we’ve established that,” she said dryly, thoroughly done with her trip to Gotham, “ please remove your hands from my breasts.”

Kara’s eyes darted up to meet her own and then back down, to where Supergirl had her hands on Lena Luthor’s breasts.

“Oh my gosh!” She ripped them off Lena’s skin as though burnt, curling them at her sides in horror. “I am sooo sorry!” Her hands were up placatingly and her eyes were painfully wide.

“Now that the world as seen you grope my breasts in public,” Lena tried to hide her amusement but there was something so satisfying about making the most powerful person in the world all flustered, “can you get me something to… cover up?”

“Here!” Kara’s eyes were wide as she basically shoved her cape at Lena with a stain of red that looked to be permanently on her cheeks.

“Um, I’ll be right back!”

Her words lingered after she had gone and Lena pulled the cape around her body, aware of the eyes on her.

A pair of paramedics rushed at her and she let them guide her away from prying eyes and to an ambulance, once there she let them know she was fine, and even allowed them to check her over. They were visibly shocked at how she didn’t have a scratch on her, after being thrown out of the building and into the police car, leaving a Lena shaped dent in said car.

But she didn’t want to hear their speculation. She’d tell them it was bulletproof clothing or something, with flame resistant gel or fabric or some other nonsense.

She really needed to talk to Bruce, it was the reason she was here after all. She doubted she’d be let back into the building now, and knew that the government agencies would want to speak to her, so she stayed out of the way, Kara’s cape around her so that she wasn’t flashing everyone again.

People ran back and forward, and from what she picked up, Bruce had shot the last two thugs when Lena had intercepted the grenade, so everyone was safe. Even if Lena’s pride was a bit dented.

She really needed to reign in her pride, she would get people killed one day, and she wasn’t sure if she could bear to be responsible for it.

“Miss Luthor,” she was brought from her musing to see a familiar face.

“Glad to see you’re alright,” Bruce Wayne was smiling as he offered her her phone. She took it with a silent thanks as he started to remove his jacket.

“Nice work in there,” she returned the compliment as he removed his inner jacket and handed it to her. Ah, he was giving her his clothing to cover herself up with. What a gentleman.

She traded Kara’s cape for it and let him hold it out in front of her while she got changed. He was a large man, so it didn’t fit her very well, but it was better than flashing the world her breasts.

“I liked the whole shooting the fire extinguisher thing.”

He was smiling as he handed the cape back and pulled his jacket on, turning to examine the authorities dragging away the assailants in cuffs or escorting them into ambulances. The hostages were being pulled away from the museum and to a coffee shop down the street where they were likely to be fed and seen to, out of the way of the public eye.

“Not as good as your trick with the seat and the flash grenades. I’m impressed.”

Lena accepted the compliment and then looked around, where had Kara gone?

“I talked with commissioner Gordon,” Bruce said and helped her step down from the ambulance. “We can speak with him tomorrow. You can stay with me tonight, if you want?”

Lena nodded appreciatively. It saved her a whole lot of drama and she could use the moment to talk to Bruce.

“Come then,” he said and lifted his arm to shield and guide her. As they walked through the people, she finally got a good look at the base around her. There were hundreds of people, ambulance works, rescue people, families, and people in SWAT gear as well as the Gotham Police.

“What a mess,” Bruce commented, catching the eye of a few reporters and guiding Lena away before they could be rushed, though it didn’t stop the screaming and photo flashes.

“Answer my calls next time,” Lena replied dryly, shooting him a look and he let out a laugh.

“I can see why she likes you,” Bruce commented with a smile, fond and kind.

Lena lifted a brow. Was he admitting her was keeping an eye on Diana? Were they being open with each other now?

“Our mutual friend,” he said and Lena nodded once.

“So…..” he let the word drag out. “Themyscira, huh?”

Lena paused and turned to face him, aware of their height difference now she was out of her heels.

“I want to take her home, Bruce.”

He met her eyes for a long moment and then gave a little nod. “Lets see what we can do.”

**Author's Note:**

> I freaking love Homeward bound! My childhood right there! If you havent seen it go and watch it!
> 
> Also, this is really me just indulging, so let me have it, okay? Plus the lure of Supergirl groping Lena Luthor in public was a little too much for me to ignore. (#^_^#)


End file.
